The U.S.-China Tariff War Affects the Flow of U.S. Copper Concentrates, Sierra Gorda's Copper Production Still Meets Expectations [SMM Weekly Review of Spot Copper Concentrates]

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       On April 18, the SMM Imported Copper Concentrate Index (weekly) reported -$34.71/dmt, a decrease of $3.82/dmt from the previous period's -$30.89/dmt. The pricing coefficient for domestic trade ore with a 20% grade was 93%-95%.

       During the week, the spot market for copper concentrates was very quiet, with many traders having already sold their May shipment positions and now waiting for June shipment arrangements. BHP's Escondida tendered 10,000 mt to smelters, with the tender closing next Tuesday. Zijin Mining's Kamoa-Kakula tendered 30,000 mt to smelters, with the tender closing next Monday and shipment scheduled for Q3. A 10,000 mt tender for Mantoverde, with shipment in June and M+4, will close on April 25.

       According to SMM, affected by the US-China trade war, some traders plan to resell copper concentrates originating from the US with a shipment date after April 10 to a Japanese smelter. Following this news, other traders plan to include copper concentrates originally imported to China into long-term contracts with Japanese smelters. Japanese smelters, constrained by smelter storage capacity, capital occupation costs, and inventory management, may not fully accept the redirected copper concentrates. The redirected copper concentrates involve mines such as Morenci, Robinson, Pinto Valley, and Mission.

       According to further information from SMM, last week a worker died at KGHM's Sierra Gorda copper mine in Chile. Although the unfortunate accident was production-related, it does not affect Sierra Gorda's production plan. Sierra Gorda has four Larox filter lines, and one was already planned for maintenance shutdown before the accident, with the other three continuing to operate. Coincidentally, during the maintenance of one Larox filter line, a worker tragically died. Sierra Gorda's copper production remains within the annual plan.

       As of April 18, SMM's nine-port copper concentrate inventory was 706,900 mt, a decrease of 19,300 mt from the previous period, with the main reduction coming from Jinzhou Port, where copper concentrate inventory decreased by 32,000 mt WoW.

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